Star of Wonder
by RiverWriter
Summary: Minister for Magic Hermione Malfoy has just gotten a Christmas surprise and she's not sure how she feels about it, good thing her best friend is around to help her figure it out.
1. Star of Wonder

_This story takes place within the same universe as one that I posted to celebrate last Christmas entitled, "The Method to Their (Christmas) Madness," as well as one-shot which is Chapter 2 in the "Various and Sundry Dramione" collection. You do not need to read both or either of those to understand this, but I just thought you might be interested if you want a little more background information :)_

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" _Oh, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright…"_

"Hum one more note of that carol and I will stab you," Hermione bit out through clenched teeth, not even bothering to look at her best friend.

The humming abruptly stopped. "I know you're really upset when you threaten violence via muggle means," Harry observed, his casual response a testament to their many years of friendship; there were few people she didn't intimidate these days.

She growled at him.

"I apologize, Madam Minister," he said with a deferential nod.

She sighed. "Why are you in such a good mood anyway?" She asked him.

She herself was feeling quite annoyed by the cheerily decorated halls of the Ministry. Harry's out of tune singing to himself had just gotten on her last nerve. Her morning discovery hadn't left her feeling particularly festive.

"Why aren't you?" He quipped, "this is our favorite time of year!"

She winced but said nothing.

He continued to lope alongside her, she was well aware that he could easily outpace her. And she knew his deference to her- using her title, slowing to walk at her side- wasn't even manufactured. His respect for her was genuine. He wanted her to succeed; as much as he'd been the hero, he'd always claimed that she was the star. So, he gamely answered her despite her attitude.

"The kids are home from Hogwarts today, it's my last day of work before Christmas, and my best friend is the most brilliant Minister we've ever had who knows how to kick arse and take names and lets me back her up while she does it," he gestured in the direction of the conference room they'd just departed, "what's not to be happy about?"

Despite herself and her own mood she smiled. His pride in her felt as good as a comforting hug. She was so lucky to have both of her best friends. Ron no longer worked at the Ministry; when Harry became Head of the DMLE and he was faced with either talking his own promotion which would have meant a desk job, or getting a new auror partner, he happily accepted his pension for his years of service and then bought into George's business. That hadn't kept him from being a very present part of her support system. He regularly threatened to test new products on her political enemies.

"So, are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Harry prompted, "I know it sucks that we got called into that meeting and missed picking up the kids from Kings Cross, but normally you'd still be bouncing off the walls to see them."

She looked around furtively, she needed to tell somebody and get her head on straight before she faced her husband.

"Let's go to my office."

He just nodded but his green eyes were wide, the effect magnified by his glasses. She didn't need to look at him, though, to know that she had shocked him. She was generally very strict about not discussing personal matters on government time.

When they reached the expansive space she activated every ward it possessed and then threw up a few privacy measures of her own. When she was done she spun around to face him, the expression on his face was almost comically incredulous. She knew it was probably overkill but she could not risk this conversation being overheard.

"I'm pregnant," she blurted.

There was a long pause.

"Merry Christmas to Malfoy," Harry eventually murmured.

She felt her eyes well up at his blasé response. Her heart began to race and she pressed a hand against her sternum in an attempt to keep herself from hyperventilating.

"Whoa, whoa, 'Mione, I was joking, I'm sorry," his strong arms surrounded her and she sank into his familiar embrace, "seriously, why are you so upset? I take it this is unexpected, but it's nothing you can't handle."

"I'm too old to have a baby!" She wailed, leaning heavily on him.

There was a beat of silence.

"Hermione, you're 41, that's not even too old for a muggle, and you're a witch, you have at least 20 more childbearing years. I know you thought you were done having kids, but you're not too old to do this."

She shook herself dramatically. "My oldest children are of age! They graduate Hogwarts next year, and I expect Adhara and James to tell us they're engaged any day now."

He made a sound of derision, "I hope I've raised James well enough that he will come to you and Draco for your blessing before he proposes," he countered.

"He doesn't need our permission, it's their decision," she insisted.

"I said blessing, not permission. And I'm still not seeing the problem, your children are all old enough now to be excited by the proposition of a baby instead of feeling like they are being usurped. And you can't possibly be worried about Malfoy's reaction, he'd happily fill that Manor with children. I can't believe I'm admitting this outloud, but the man was born to be a father, which is particularly impressive given the disastrous example he had."

"I thought you liked Lucius," she sniffed.

"I like him now, but you know as well as I do that he was a terror when we were kids. But speaking of Lucius, and Narcissa for that matter, they'll probably try to buy you a small country or something as thanks for giving them another grandchild. Three was already beyond their imagination."

"I just- I'm afraid, Harry. My pregnancy with the twins was so hard, and I'm so much older now."

"But your pregnancy with Caelum was perfectly normal," he countered comfortingly, "it was the twin aspect that complicated things, the chance of that happening again…"

"I wasn't Minister then," she responded miserably.

She could almost hear the pieces click into place in Harry's brain.

"Is that what you're worried about, your job?" He asked as he soothingly ran a hand up and down her back.

"Does that make me a terrible person!?" She sobbed, "this just wasn't in the cards, and we both know that I'm already too young, too female, and mostly too muggleborn to be Minister, only the fact that I'm a Malfoy appeased certain factions. But pregnant? I'll be ousted before I give birth, and I still have so much I want to accomplish, I've barely started!"

"No, no, that doesn't make you a terrible person at all. You've worked so hard to get here, it's completely understandable that you would be concerned. Hermione, before you panic completely, I have to ask, are you even sure?"

"Sure?"

"That you're pregnant," he clarified.

"I did a muggle test, they were right about my other two pregnancies."

"But they _can_ be wrong. The charm is infallible and I don't think I'm wrong in assuming that you didn't want to tell anybody about this, so you haven't had anybody to cast it for you."

There was a long pause.

"Are you offering?"

"If you'd like, I've done it a time or two," he joked with a quirk of his lips.

She knew of at least four times, in fact: with his own wife's three pregnancies, as well as her first. She'd come to him on that occasion almost as hysterical as she was now. That pregnancy had been wanted and planned for, but when the reality of it had hit she had panicked. Not-so-many-years post war and she'd been terrified about how her children as half-blood Malfoys, would be treated. Harry, himself a newly expectant father at the time, had calmed her and helped her confirm the pregnancy.

Not that she didn't already trust him completely, but there was something about the particular expression on his face, along with those familiar green eyes and mussed hair, which made him look so childlike, even at forty, that helped settle her soul. And she suddenly realized that this conversation wasn't happening by chance, she'd subconsciously sought him out, and then baited him into this discussion with her snappy mood, because she had needed him, as her best friend, at this moment.

"Go ahead," she said, closing her eyes, "I can't look," there was a long pause, she grew anxious but didn't dare open her eyes. "Harry?" She prompted.

"It's negative."

Her eyes flew open and she stared at him in disbelief. She'd been so sure. She had been too busy to realize that she'd missed her period, but when she started experiencing other symptoms and thought about it, she realized it had been something like eight weeks since she'd had one.

"Oh," she said as her heart sank, "well that's good then, I mean, that's what I wanted."

She took a deep breath, bit her lip and blinked away her tears even as he reached for her, she batted him away.

But against the unexpected blow it was pointless; those tears began to stream down her cheeks. She turned her face away from Harry and tried to wipe at them discreetly.

"You're disappointed," he observed gravely.

"I shouldn't be," she gulped in a deep shuddering breath, "what in Godric's name is the matter with me?! I was just standing here crying all over you because I was pregnant and now…" she trailed off and threw her arms around him, sobbing into his neck.

"Hermione?"

"Hmmm?" She snuffled.

"I'm really sorry."

"It's not your fault Harry, thank you for listening," she answered in a small voice.

"I will always be here for you, no matter what, you don't need to thank me for that. But I do need to apologize, because I lied."

Something in her brain stuttered to a halt.

"What do you mean?" She asked, because she was incapable of processing this confession accurately; Harry didn't lie to her.

She felt him take a fortifying breath and subconsciously braced herself.

"I lied when I said that the charm was negative, that you weren't pregnant," he confessed.

Her breath caught on a sob, "what did you just say?" Unconsciously she was balling her hands into fists.

"I said I lied, it was positive. You're having a baby," he admitted.

For a moment everything stopped, and then she clapped one hand over her mouth and started beating his chest with the other.

It was literally the only time in their entire relationship that she didn't care whether she was hurting this wizard or not.

"Harry James Potter, how dare you do that to me!" She screeched, tears falling freely down her face.

He let her hit him, didn't even try to fight her, and she quickly ran out of energy. She'd been regurgitating nearly everything she'd eaten lately, after all. When she tired she melted against his chest, trusting him to hold her up.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he murmured, rubbing her back.

"Seriously Harry, that was mean," she huffed.

"I know it was," he said on a sigh, "but I thought it was kinder than weeks of indecision."

"What is that supposed to mean?" She jerked her head back and glared at him.

"It means that I know you, and I know that you would have agonized for weeks about this and how you're going to handle it. You would have worried your kids and Malfoy as you tried to come to terms with this. You would have worn yourself thin."

"Don't you think that was a risky plan? What if I had been relieved?"

"No," he countered firmly. "Like I said, I know you, you can't help but overthink just about everything, but deep down, when that stick turned blue- or whatever exactly happens with muggle pregnancy tests, the commercials are kind of unclear- you were imagining a brand new blond baby, and making alphabetical lists of possible constellation names in your head. And you were thrilled, whether you knew it or not. So I decided to show you how much you wanted this. You may not have planned for it, but the moment it became a reality to you, you were fully onboard."

Her head fell to his chest once again, "the list wasn't alphabetical," she huffed indignantly, "it was contingent on how much I like the name," she looked up at him with a glorious smile. "I love him, but no matter how determined my husband is, we will never have a child called Scorpius,"

He laughed, loudly.

The relief, oh the relief.

Her best friend was magical. Figuratively and literally. She hugged him about the waist again. "Thank you Harry," she breathed gratefully.

"No thanks needed, a new godchild is plenty," he winked and adjusted his glasses.

"How do you know you'll be godfather?" She narrowed her eyes indignantly.

"Oh please, who else would you ask," he scoffed, and then bent at the waist and looked at her belly. "Hello in there," he tapped her lightly, "I just want you to remember that out of everybody I, your godfather, am your favorite."

She giggled at his antics and pulled him upright. "Come on, we both have families waiting for us," she tugged him towards the Minister of Magic's private floo.

"Do you and Malfoy need a lesson in the contraceptive charm or something? As I remember, Caelum was somewhat of a surprise as well."

He meant to be teasing but it brought her up short.

"I was still breastfeeding the twins when Caelum was conceived, so I couldn't take the potion, and if you tell me you and Ginny always remembered the charm I call foul, I know how quickly in succession your children were born," she said haughtily.

"Touche," he said with an indulgent smile.

"I think I was late with my potion," she confessed guiltily. "I've just been so busy, usually I take it religiously but… Do you think Draco will be very angry?"

"Hermione," her name was spoken on a whisper as he took her back into his arms. "He's going to be thrilled. This wasn't a trick nor is it something you did on purpose. Though, if you'd wanted another child he'd have gladly given it to you. You have nothing to worry about."

She knew he was right, but it still felt like a betrayal, like a major life decision she'd made without her husband's permission. She was more responsible than this, and he'd already been so wonderful about her new job which took so much time away from them, how could she ask him for more?

"I think you've just got yourself a little Christmas miracle here," Harry continued, hugging her tight, "I was only joking."

She smiled tearfully at him and sighed in relief. But as much as she appreciated her best friend's love and support, she could no longer wait to see the wonderful man she'd married, she was -almost positive- that Harry was right and he'd be ecstatic.

"Thank you Harry," she sighed gratefully, "I'd like to go home now."

"Of course Hermione," he smiled thoughtfully, but then he stopped and turned suddenly, brushing a hand over her abdomen, over the place where her little miracle lay.

"Star of wonder," he said, meeting her eyes, joy painting his expression.

It was cheesy, but oddly appropriate, given Draco's family's naming tradition. And Harry, of all people, would appreciate a so-called miracle child. She brushed away a tear as he led her into the floo. She'd never be able to scold him for humming that particular song ever again.

 **Author's note: I won't deprive you of Draco's reaction, that will take place in the next and final installment of this little story which will be up in the next few days. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Little Drummer Boy

Draco sighed happily. His children were home from school. His wife was due back any moment from work and his personal elf had confided in him that she'd convinced the kitchen staff to fix his favorite of roast duck for the evening meal. He wasn't in any way fooled that the real reason that meal had been chosen was because it was also the favorite of all three of his children, but he couldn't have cared less.

It was their first Christmas actually living at the Manor. A day he'd honestly thought would never come- hadn't even really wished for it- but after Hermione's election as Minister they'd decided that the unparalleled protection that the wards of his ancestral home offered made the move a smart choice for their piece of mind. Hermione had been the one to suggest it, in an unbelievable turn of fate she'd grown fond of the place, and of his parents, for that matter.

The Malfoys and Potters had been planning to spend this, the first evening the children were back from Hogwarts, together for weeks. All of their children were close but Adhara, Leo, and James had a bond that was unparalleled even by the famed Golden Trio. Adhara and Leo being twins, James and Leo best friends, and- as much it sometimes pained Draco to admit it- Adhara and James had loved each other from the cradle. Hermione had consoled him over that fact by pointing out that at least their girl wouldn't be bringing strangers into their family.

He'd held the kid minutes after his birth but if he hadn't been witness to some of the antics that teenage wizards were already beginning to try and pull on their Lily, he would have resented James for usurping him so easily as the most important man in Adhara's life- aside from Leo. But he only found himself grateful that she'd never experienced the misery of being heartbroken by a wizard, and he trusted James that she never would.

They were all having drinks in the parlour outside of the family dining room when he heard the tell-tale sounds of his wife and her best friend's banter and laughter approaching. He met Ginny's eyes and they let out a mutual sigh of relief- given their spouses' respective positions in the Ministry they were always targets, always had been, but now more than ever- it was always a relief when they returned home safely.

They strolled into the room, Harry's arm companionably around Hermione's shoulders, nothing he hadn't seen a million times (and something that, secretly, made him worry just a little less about her as people thought twice about messing with Harry Potter) but her puffy, red eyes gave him pause. And such signs of distress were in direct contrast to cheerful sight of the Santa hat Potter had perched on his head and the sparkly garland Hermione had strewn around her neck. Lily, the only child still young enough to not try and play it cool, sprung up and went to embrace her father and honorary aunt.

"Sorry we're late," the other wizard announced to the room, holding his daughter against one side, his other arm still hooked around Hermione, "I was busy watching Hermione kick arse and take names, and then she saw fit to try and beat me to death in her office."

Hermione turned and whacked him on the shoulder.

"I rest my case."

She rolled her eyes and ducked out from under his arm.

He quietly approached Hermione as she began to make her rounds, kissing the rest of the kids. "What's wrong?" He asked.

She stood up from loving all over Caelum, who was pretending to hate the attention, and smiled at him sweetly, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Perhaps we could speak before dinner is served."

Her stilted manner of address and guarded face had him standing up very straight, the noise surrounding them faded into the background as he focused and worried over his wife. "Alright," he gestured formally to an adjacent room, as if this wasn't her house too and she needed an invitation.

She paused to greet his mother and father who both looked decidedly worried about her and then preceded him out of the room. But she didn't stop in the next room, just kept walking until she reached his music room where she suddenly stopped, spun on her heel, and dragged him into her arms, kissing him passionately. All his instincts warred with themselves- those which told him that something was decidedly wrong, against those that always wanted his wife and welcomed any encouragement from her. The latter won out without any real fight, but then as quickly as she'd launched herself at him, she was wrenching herself away from him.

"I have something for you."

He tried to catch his breath as he watched with something like disbelief as she she picked up a wide rectangular box from a side table and pressed it into his hands. "Happy Christmas, I hope this suffices, I haven't had the time or energy to do much shopping lately…" she trailed off.

His shoulders automatically relaxed, if she was giving him gifts it couldn't be that bad. He opened the box to reveal a beautifully knitted blanket- a baby blanket with a pattern of drummer boys on it. And when he pulled it out of the box, letting it carelessly fall to the floor as he shook out the blanket, he realized that it was actually unfinished.

He looked back up at her in disbelief as he began to process what he was seeing. He knew that Hermione's favorite Christmas carol was "Little Drummer Boy," and that it stemmed from some long dead ancestor who had been a drummer in the army. The story had, he now regretted to admit, meant little to him, as it clearly meant a great deal to her. And he knew she'd sung the song to all three of their children.

"Are you serious?" He reached for her, his hand hovering just over her abdomen.

She smiled, took his hand and brought it to rest against her body. "Yes."

"You're sure?"

"Cast the charm and see for yourself," she encouraged.

"You had Potter check earlier, didn't you?"

She just nodded, her eyes uncertain. But he couldn't be upset, it had been a long time since he felt any jealousy towards Potter and he'd accepted that his wife had a way of processing things that usually involved her best friend. He pulled out his wand and waved it in front of her belly, almost immediately a telltale blue glow appeared between them, indicating a positive result. He felt a grin split his face.

"Oh Hermione," he gasped, swooping down and capturing her lips, kissing her until they were both breathless again. "Where did you get this blanket though, even you couldn't have found a way to knit something this size in a matter of hours." It went without saying that she couldn't have kept this from him longer than that, they could read each other too well.

"I actually started making it for the twins, once I realized that they were due around Christmas. I wanted it to be a surprise for you too, back then, but when my pregnancy became so risky, I was too paranoid or too afraid to continue. I never found the opportunity to finish it but couldn't bring myself to throw it away. I think it's time to finish what I started. It seems aptly timed, finding out just before Christmas. You're really not upset? It's probably my fault, for forgetting my potion-"

He cut her off with a kiss. "Not even a little bit upset, love. What about you? You were pretty certain you were done with babies after Caelum."

She bit her lip, a smile slowly forming on her face and tentatively touched her stomach. "It's not a choice I would have intentionally made at this point in my life. But it's a wonderful surprise." He kissed her forehead and her smile widened. "I'm so happy, but I'm also so confused," she nestled herself against his chest as she spoke.

"You're worried about your job?" He asked knowingly.

She nodded, her nose brushing the skin of his neck. "I don't want to give it up, but I also feel badly about that, our other babies had my full attention for months after their births."

"Things change Hermione," he tapped her chin until she raised her face to his, "don't feel guilty, you've worked hard to get where you are."

"You sound like Harry."

"Bite your tongue," he growled, biting her lower lip instead.

She laughed but largely ignored his comment. "But if the baby's health becomes an issue, I won't hesitate to step aside, that's the most important thing and my position is stressful."

He frowned at her, kissed her again and then said: "I hope it won't come to that, for your sake, or for magical Britain as a whole. They deserve you. But I'm taking a step back with mine."

"Wait, what? You don't need to do that!" She reared back in surprise.

"Hermione," he rubbed her upper arms, hoping to soothe her. "Father is perfectly capable of stepping in and filling in for me, and even if he wasn't, I do believe I've performed admirably over the last twenty years, Malfoy Enterprises can run without me. Then, of course, Adhara has wanted a place at the company since she knew it existed, she's been training for it, and she graduates in less than eighteen months. No matter what, there will not be a lack of Malfoy presence there for long." He chuckled. "Merlin, Father will be tickled pink to mentor her."

Hermione seemed to consider that.

"Your father would love that," she eventually admitted with a wry grin. "But you don't think he'll be angry about you cutting back your own time at work?"

"With another grandchild on the way? It wouldn't surprise me if he insisted on it. He'll want to make sure you're both taken care of and I've more than proven myself, he can't accuse me of shirking my duties."

"I'm not fragile," she argued, setting her jaw in that stubborn manner which he would never, ever admit that he found adorable.

"No, of course not. But you are more vulnerable than ever. Please, please let yourself be taken care of for once. Again, I'm not asking you to quit your job, you've worked so hard and you're going to do a lot of good. He or she," he pressed his hand against her abdomen, "is going to need somebody to take care of them, and I know how you feel about leaving our children's care to nannies or elves on a full time basis. Which is something I agree with, but you're going to be more tied up with work than you ever have been. So yes, I'm doing this."

"She," Hermione said, startling him.

"What?"

"It's a girl."

He could only stare at her for a moment, his heart felt full to bursting. He loved being the father to a daughter. He and Adhara had a special relationship, and he was ecstatic at the idea of another- not to mention that two of each seemed ideal- but he recovered and just rolled his eyes at her proclamation. "Is there literally nothing you don't allow Potter to know before me?"

"I haven't officially checked on the gender," she shrugged and smirked at him, "and I actually didn't tell Harry this- he's quite certain that I have a list of possible names- but I just know that it's a girl, that her name is Lyra, and that she loves 'Little Drummer Boy'. I've been listening to it non-stop for at least a week, I think my staff believes I've lost my mind, but-" she shrugged again, "there it is."

Well, who was he to argue with that? And, anxious to make a good first impression, he drummed his fingers in rhythm against her still-flat tummy.

 _Pa-rum-pum-pum-pum_.

She smiled up at him, eyes glassy with tears.

"Ready to go back in," he wondered, she nodded and gave him a quick kiss.

"You're not going to be able to keep this quiet, are you?"

"What do you think?" He asked with a wink and offered her his arm.

They made their way to the dining room where the two families had adjourned for dinner in their absence. "You're pregnant again," Ginny declared, almost as soon as they'd entered the room. "I'm right aren't I?" She laughed at the half-dozen dumbfounded expressions. "Oh pleeeeeeaaase, Harry looks ridiculously happy, and let's face it, Hermione, you always tell him things before you tell anybody else. And then there's the fact that Draco looks like the cat who caught the canary." She cackled, looking very pleased with herself as well and tossed back the rest of her wine.

"Wait," said Adhara leaning forward in her chair, "is Aunt Ginny wrong?"

There was a silence. Hermione looked to him, he shrugged but he knew that the expression on his face was totally giving them away. Hermione simply shook her head, and then their almost grown-up little girl squealed, jumped from her seat and ran at them both. Draco automatically stepped in front of Hermione and caught Adhara around the waist before she could jump on his wife.

"Careful, love," he said gently.

"Sorry, Daddy," she disentangled herself from his arms to embrace her mother and in a matter of moments they were both sobbing as they held each other.

"This is so great, Mum," he heard her whisper, "you're the best parents, another baby is just such wonderful news!" Draco thought his heart might have stopped in his chest at that declaration- he hadn't realized it until he'd started a relationship with Hermione, but all he'd ever wanted to be was a good husband and- even more importantly- a father, and to hear that he'd succeeded from his own child's mouth was nearly overwhelming.

As he watched his girls- three of them now- they were swarmed by well wishers. His mother joined Hermione and Adhara, and they held each other in a three way hug for several minutes while his father looked on with a wistful look on his face. When he met Draco's eyes over their heads he just gave him a solemn nod and a small smile and the part of him that still yearned for his father's approval became a little more settled.

The boys were a little reluctant- as if they didn't know quite how to behave- but they seemed happy enough. That is, until Caelum was done hugging Hermione, and he walked straight up to him and punched him on the arm. And for a moment Draco was frozen, until his notoriously-pain-in-the-arse-son spoke.

"Hey Leo!" He called. "How long did Dad lecture you on the contraceptive charm? Because I think we need to give him his own talk." Leo snickered but, being considerably more circumspect than his brother, said nothing. Caelum had the nerve to just stand there in silent challenge, with his arms crossed over is chest and a smirk on his face that reminded Draco so much of his own attitude at that age that he reminded himself to apologize to Hermione yet again for what a complete and utter prat he'd been.

Hermione reached past him, pinched her son's earlobe, and twisted it viciously.

"Mum!" He yelped.

"You deserved that and you know it!" She chastised, actually wagging her finger at him.

Draco had to suppress his own snicker at the sight of the boy backing away from his petite mother, apologizing profusely. It's not as if he was any less afraid of Hermione himself, instead he took her back into his arms and took the opportunity to really appreciate the moment.

A quarter century in and he still didn't know how this was is life, or what he possibly could have done to deserve it. A house full of love and noisy dinner parties, raucous Christmas mornings that bore little resemblance to the staid holidays of his childhood, parents who finally felt able to express affection for their family, children who made it all complete, and a wife who had made it all possible. And soon, the sensation of another little one drumming back at him from inside of her womb.

 _Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum_


End file.
